IT began as a small gathering in 1986, and has grown into a movement that has transformed the arts across the Highlands.
Now, a spectacular 40th anniversary concert will bring together musicians from across four decades of the Fèis Rois charity’s history, alongside some of the young performers who represent its future.
Fèis Rois was the second Fèis to be established in Scotland. The first, Fèis Bharraigh, was held in the Isle of Barra in 1981, and was attended by Christine Martin, a strings instructor from Ross-shire.
Inspired, she suggested to colleagues that a similar project should be developed in Ross and Cromarty. From an initial event hosting around 50 young people, Fèis Rois has grown to become widely recognised as a national leader in traditional music education in Scotland.
With a busy year-round programme and a local, national and international reach, the charity now contracts nearly 200 freelance musicians to work with more than 5000 children, young people and adult learners every year.
Thousands of musicians have taken their first creative steps through Fèis Rois, with many going on to enjoy distinguished careers including Mischa Macpherson, Lauren MacColl, Mairearad Green, Innes White, Graham Mackenzie, Corrina Dawn, Ronan Martin, Rory Matheson and Rachel Walker, who will join the next generation of musicians on stage at Eden Court in Inverness on Tuesday for an evening of music and celebration.
Award-winning fiddle player MacColl said she did not think she would be playing the music she is playing today without the grounding in Highland music and culture she had been given by Fèis Rois.
“A lot of it, like much of the best teaching, was subconscious learning,” she said. “It was immersion in a world of language, heritage, respect for tradition and permission to carry it forward with our own voice, all delivered through fun, genuine engagement and sharing.
“As well as the obvious musical element, Fèis Rois has made it possible to carve out a freelance career as a musician in the Highlands.
“Employment across educational and creative projects gave me the security and confidence to return to living and working here. The visibility of an organisation like Fèis Rois, and the high-profile work it does, continues to show that world-class creative careers can be built here in the Highlands.”
The concert will showcase the rich traditions that have been central to Fèis Rois over the past four decades, from Gaelic song and fiddle music to pipe sets and dancing, while also celebrating the musicians, teachers, participants and communities who have helped shape its story.
Led by musical director and former Fèis Rois participant Innes White, the concert will feature a 40-piece house band made up of some of Scotland’s finest traditional musicians, all with their own connections to Fèis Rois. They will be joined on stage by young musicians, including the 2026 Ceilidh Trail, Kiltearn Fiddlers and Cluich Rois.
Rooted in the traditions of the Highlands and Islands but always looking at ways to innovate and develop, Fèis Rois’s influence reaches far beyond Ross-shire, with its long-standing partnership with the National Celtic Festival of Australia and collaborations with major folk festivals such as Cambridge, Sidmouth and Lorient, which provide opportunities for the young Ceilidh Trail musicians to share the stage with some of the world’s top folk musicians.
Australian duo The Maes, who will be special guests at the September 8 concert, in partnership with the Blas Festival, participated in the first youth exchange between Fèis Rois and National Celtic Festival of Australia in 2013. There they met and collaborated with Fèis Rois musicians Innes White (Sian, Staran) and Conal McDonagh (Breabach) – a relationship which has continued in their professional careers.
Fiona Dalgetty, Fèis Rois chief executive, said the organisation had always been about people, bringing them together through music, creating opportunities and giving them the confidence to explore their own culture and creativity.
“It feels really special to be able to celebrate 40 years by bringing so many of those individuals together on one stage,” she said.
“As we mark the 40th anniversary of Fèis Rois, we celebrate not only four decades of remarkable achievement but also the countless tutors, volunteers, families, supporters and participants whose passion has made this possible.”
Tickets are available here.
